Arizona Supreme Court sends Arizona Prosecution Of Fake Electors back to grand jury
The Arizona Supreme Court sent the arizona prosecution of fake electors back to a grand jury after rejecting Attorney General Kris Mayes’ request to keep the case moving without restarting that step. Her office said it will present the case again in full, keeping the stalled criminal case in the grand jury process.
The ruling extends a case that began in April 2024, when an indictment charged 18 Republicans with forgery, fraud and conspiracy. Prosecutors accused them of trying to undo Joe Biden’s victory in Arizona by 10,457 votes.
Kris Mayes and the grand jury
Mayes had asked the court to let the case continue without going back to a grand jury, but the justices rejected that request. Her office then said it will again present the case in its entirety to a grand jury, which resets the charging step rather than moving the case straight toward trial.
The case has been stalled for over a year. Three defendants have resolved their cases, including one who pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge, while the remaining defendants have pleaded not guilty.
Giuliani defense response
Mark L. Williams, who represents Rudy Giuliani, called the latest decision meritless. “In my mind, the whole thing is meritless,” he said. “Mr. Giuliani has done nothing wrong.”
Defense attorneys had argued that the original grand jury was not shown the relevant parts of a law governing how presidential contests are certified. They have also filed a dozen dismissal requests, which slowed the case further. The dispute sits within one of the remaining criminal cases tied to efforts by Donald Trump’s supporters to overturn the 2020 election results.
Arizona fake elector case
The Arizona case is part of a broader set of prosecutions tied to the fake elector scheme, with cases still ongoing in Arizona, Nevada and Wisconsin. Similar cases in Michigan and Georgia were dismissed by the courts. The path ahead in Arizona now runs back through the grand jury, the step Mayes tried to avoid.
